Level: high schools and vocational schools

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Koirankynnen leikkaaja

Finland pays its war debts. Mertsi Vepsäläinen went to war with a firm intention to save an entire nation, but as a war invalid with a head injury, his entire will is now focused on saving his colleague’s Finnish Spitz, Sakke, from destruction. He embarks on a multi-phased journey that takes him through the harsh winter landscapes of Finland, where war reparations are being paid, to rigorous forestry work, culminating in a dramatic attempt to trim Sakke the dog’s overgrown dewclaws.

Starring:
Peter Franzén
Ahti Kuoppala
Taisto Reimaluoto
Leo Lastumäki

The film splendidly won six Jussi Awards:
Peter Franzén: Best Actor
Markku Pölönen: Best Director
Best Screenplay: Markku Pölönen
Best Cinematography: Kari Sohlberg
Best Film

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Emmauksen tiellä

Rane returns to his hometown after 20 years and faces his memories and choices. The story, accompanied by popular songs, unfolds along the rural roads. The film breaks traditional storytelling by employing meta-cinematic techniques. The actors repeatedly refer to the film’s script, describing their characters and dramatic choices directly to the camera.

Sanna-Kaisa Palo won the Best Supporting Actress Jussi Award.

Starring:
Puntti Valtonen
Peter Franzén
Aake Kalliala

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Badding

A fairytale-like depiction of the shy hero of Finnish rock, Rauli ‘Badding’ Somerjoki, portrays the whirlwind of a sensitive country boy amidst the harsh touring life. According to the director’s own words, the movie ‘is neither true nor false,’ but rather a fantasy that allows for various interpretations. Based on flashback sequences, the narrative begins with moments preceding the aging rock star’s comeback concert. The stage-frightened Badding-Rauli hits the road, fleeing. An old friend, Ossi, becomes Rauli’s chauffeur, although his motives are not entirely sincere. The road to Somero is burdened with memories, but the most crucial element, friendship, is discovered after all.

The film splendidly earned four different Jussi Awards: Best Film, Best Actor (Janne Reinikainen), Best Cinematography (Kari Sohlberg), Best Production Design (Minna Santakari), and Best Costume Design (Tiina Kaukanen).

Starring:
Janne Reinikainen
Peter Franzén
Karoliina Blackburn
Puntti Valtonen

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The Last Wedding

The Last Wedding (orig. Kivenpyörittäjän kylä) is based on Heikki Turunen’s book of the same original name and depicts the final moments of Jerusalem, a village left behind by structural changes, encapsulating the beauty and misery of human life. Pekka returns after a long time to his hometown, the small village of Jerusalem, to celebrate the village’s last wedding. His own marriage seems to have reached a dead end. The village gathers to prepare for this final event, and within a single summer day, the bitter-sweet spectrum of human existence with its joys and sorrows seems to converge.

The film won three Jussi Awards: Best Film, Best Supporting Actor (Matti Varjo), and Best Direction (Markku Pölönen).

Starring:
Martti Suosalo
Jarmo Mäkinen
Henrika Andersson
Esko Nikkari
Rauha Valkonen

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Lyrics and Lace

Directed by Matti Ijäs, this stark comedy portrays itinerant poets and the agony of creation.

In a television interview, Tane Lintunen confesses that instead of finding subjects, a poet stumbles upon them: ‘As my old friend Maestro says – when truth walks towards you, skin it.’

The man embarks on an eventful poetry tour with the debut poet Tomi Rusko (played by Mikko Reitala), who comes from a university background. The poets read their poems and give lectures at various events. Lintunen teaches his colleague to observe women.

Paavo Pentikäinen received the Best Actor Jussi Award for his role.

Starring:
Paavo Pentikäinen
Mikko Reitala
Kristiina Elstelä
Irma Junnilainen

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Spandex Sapiens

The lonely son of a Canadian preacher man, Michael, builds the first professional boxing league far away in Finland. Transgender boxer Jessica joins, competing against Michael both physically and ideologically. Anger and frustration affect Michael, now 40 years old and still seeking a partner. He yearns for love, but first, he must learn not to hate. After finding true love online, Michael redefines his values and reinvents himself as a boxer in love.

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Knucklebonehead

Oscar is 40 years 40-year-old teacher whose Jekyll and Hyde lifestyle starts to cast a shadow on his family life. Just when he is starting to show signs of calming down following the birth of his firstborn, new mortgage, and several visits to a psychiatrist, his manager lures him back into his old life as a rock’n’roll lunatic and to an apocalyptic three-week tour in China.

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The Painting Sellers

Christmas is already at the doorstep, but the sales just aren’t happening. Collaboration is faltering, and it’s constantly freezing, but that’s not the main issue. The biggest problem is the budding friendship. Juho Kuosmanen’s Cannes award-winning film from 2010.

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Ystäväni Henry

The story revolves around the secrets and traumas of 12-year-old Elsa and Henry, as well as their families, but also delves into themes of friendship, acceptance, and love.

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Själö: Island of Souls

For centuries, a closed institution served as a final destination for socially transgressive women at Själö, an isolated island in the Baltic Sea. The outcast women were kept there in detention to be observed, studied, and measured – in much the same way as the scientists now focus on the surrounding nature at the research center the place has been converted to. While a young scientist is collecting samples on the island, the past emerges in the whispers of the unsent letters and empty rooms of the hospital. The space fills up with hidden memories as the invisible archives become alive. Whose stories are remembered and whose are forgotten?